Judge Howell denies DA's motion on extradited defendants

Mar. 2—At 2:15 a.m. this morning, Morgan County Circuit Judge Jennifer Howell denied a motion by Morgan County District Attorney Scott Anderson requesting notice of any hearings in which a previously extradited defendant may be released from jail.

The DA's motion focused on the case of Christopher Mark Sherwood, 46, who is under indictment for first-degree theft for allegedly stealing a 2002 Dodge truck in 2019. In the motion filed Tuesday, Anderson complained that his office and the Morgan County Sheriff's Office have had to extradite Sherwood from other states three times, yet on three occasions Howell has released the defendant from jail on his own recognizance. Howell most recently released Sherwood on Feb. 21.

"It makes absolutely no sense whatsoever for this defendant to have been released from custody, especially on his own recognizance, when he has failed to appear for arraignment on two prior occasions and has been extradited on three prior occasions," Anderson wrote in the motion.

In the order denying the motion, Howell said she initially converted Sherwood's $2,500 bond to a recognizance bond — meaning the defendant was to be released without posting a monetary bond — on May 17, 2020, after determining he had been jailed almost three months due to his indigency. The defendant, Howell wrote, "was homeless, resided primarily out of state, and traveled out of state for work when he could find work."

Howell also noted that the DA's office "did not indict this Defendant for over one year following the (July 7, 2019) offense date, and given the current trial settings and number of pending cases, this case would not be set for trial for at least eight months," during which time Sherwood would have remained in jail due to his inability to post bond.

She said Anderson's request that the court notify the DA's office of hearings in which a previously extradited defendant could be released was impractical because the court receives no record of extraditions. If the DA's office wants to receive such notice, Howell wrote, it should "file a motion in each case where a defendant is extradited, requesting a hearing on bond."

Howell's order noted that while Sherwood missed previous arraignments, he did appear at a Feb. 22 arraignment.

Sherwood's trial is scheduled for Oct. 17. He is currently out of jail and resides in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, according to court records. First-degree theft is a Class B felony with a maximum punishment of 20 years in prison.

— eric@decaturdaily.com or 256-340-2435. Twitter @DD_Fleischauer.